For almost five years, Brandon Tran managed to take money bound for his employer's suppliers and put it into his personal accounts.
By the time he was caught in 2010, $1.9 million had been taken from Diamond Graphics Inc., the Twin Cities company where Tran worked.
Tuesday, Tran, 36, of Brooklyn Park, pleaded guilty in federal court in Minneapolis to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
Starting in 2005, Tran worked as an accountant at Diamond Graphics, with responsibilities that included cutting checks for vendors. Though a higher-up needed to endorse the outgoing checks, Tran began depositing them into his personal bank accounts, prosecutors said in a news release.
He was able to conceal the deposits and made "misrepresentations" to Diamond's owners about the financial condition of the company, according to charging papers filed in the case.
He was charged with the two felony counts May 2 in a felony "information," which indicated a plea deal was in the works.
He faces a maximum prison term of 30 years combined on the two counts and will be sentenced in coming weeks. In his plea agreement, prosecutors and Tran agreed that the guideline range for his sentence is 2-1/2 to almost four years, though it ultimately will be up to a judge.
The wire fraud charge is tied to an electronic transfer of $46,612 Tran made in October. The transfer originated outside Minnesota and arrived in a bank account within the state.
The
money-laundering charge stems from a check he wrote in May 2010 for $60,000 to Edina Realty Title, using cash he obtained from the scam.John Welbes can be reached at 651-228-2175.
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